Once Upon a Marichat
by Scarycrown121
Summary: Marinette's late night run in with Chat Noir puts her on alert. It's one thing to see him as Ladybug, but stepping into her personal life seems a bit much. Her life as a superhero and normal girl are melding together, the opposite of what she wants. Will she be able to conquer her shyness and confront Adrien? Will she embrace Chat Noir and accept him in her normal life too? Or not?
1. After Patrol

Chapter One

Marinette sighed in contentment and stared at her pink bedroom walls. Her night patrol with Chat Noir had ended an hour ago and no akuma had reared its ugly head. To be fair, night patrols usually yielded no difficulties and rather served as an excuse to use her powers as free as a bird. This was her favorite time: The dark sky as a backdrop to the lights of Paris, nothing between her and the spirals of tiles lining the rooftops, her unwavering companion by her side, laughing to himself, and the feeling of the air rush by, as if she was soaring.

She enjoyed being the Ladybug who saved the people and waved at the crowd and signed the autographs, but she loved being the Ladybug who leapt over the roof of houses, with nothing between her and the sky.

In her daydreaming of Ladybug, Marinette nearly missed the slight knock that came from her window. Startled, she snapped up from her position lying on the bed and looked at her window. Upon seeing who had rapped her window panes, she nearly fell into cardiac arrest.

It was Chat Noir.

He grinned lazily and winked, motioning with his hands as if asking her to open the window. Marinette swallowed and tried to calm her racing heart. _Did he follow me here?_ She thought to herself. _Does he know who I am?_ Steadying her body and gathering courage to face the oncoming storm, she walked toward the window and raised it.

"Chat Noir," she said in mock shock "What in the name of sanity are you doing here?"

He grinned even wider and paced his gloved hands on her windowsill, holding himself up. "I was journeying home," he said "When I saw your house and thought I should check up on you. After all, the bravest cat in Paris always wants to know if his Princess is safe."

"Safe?" Marinette said in confusion, wrinkling her brow "Why wouldn't I be safe?"

"Well…I thought perhaps after the events of last week with the Evillustrator…" he began.

"Oh!" Marinette said almost sagging in relief. He didn't know who she was then. She was safe. She smiled, now feeling much calmer. "I haven't been bothered since," she responded to Chat. "In fact, I think that the Evillustrator will never bother me again after you and Ladybug dealt with him."

"Ah!" Chat Noir said "It was nothing! What kind of knight would I be without saving a few Princesses here and there."

For some odd reason, Chat Noir saying 'a few Princesses' bothered Marinette. She knew he was a flirt with Ladybug but she never expected him to be flirty with all the girls they rescued. _Is this the first time he's stopped by someone's house?_ She thought, slightly annoyed. _Has he stopped by Chloe? Or Alya?_ She frowned and turned away from the window.

"Princess?" Chat Noir said, suddenly confused. "Have I said something to upset you?"

"Do you always visit girls after you save them?" Marinette said before she could stop herself. As soon as she said it, she felt guilty. It wasn't any of her business if Chat saw other girls. It's not as if they were dating or even romantically involved. It made no difference if he saw just her or all the girls in Paris.

Chat Noir closed his mouth in surprise at Marinette's harsh tone. He hadn't expected this. Marinette had always been nothing but sweet in his experience. Even when she fought briefly against the Evillustrator, nothing had seemed out of the ordinary. Why was she acting upset now? Was she…jealous?

This thought stuck in his brain and he nearly chuckled. If only he could get Ladybug to act jealous. How could Marinette, a girl who barely knew Chat Noir have some sort of romantic feelings, while Ladybug, Chat's closest companion, feel nothing?

"I don't, Princess," Chat said maneuvering his body up from beneath the window sill to on it. He lay comfortably in the window, one leg dangling into her bedroom. "This was strictly a first and only."

Marinette bit her lip and turned back to face Chat. "I mean, I'm not upset or anything," she babbled waving her hands slightly, "It's just that, you know, everyone knows you like Ladybug and I'm just a nobody and its odd that you're visiting me when you probably have more important things to do and I-".

She was cut off by Chat's burst of laughter. It ran like music, high and low, full and rich. It was not like his usual chuckles around Ladybug but undeniably familiar in a way Marinette could not quite explain.

"Oh Marinette," Chat said jovially, more comfortable now that Marinette was her usual stuttering self, "If you wanted to know about my romantic life, you only had to ask."

Marinette blushed beet-red and placed her hands on her hips in defiance. "I do not give a hoot about your romantic life, Chat Noir!" she said "I just don't understand why you're here and talking to me when you barely know me."

"Maybe I want to get to know you better, Princess," Chat said leaping from the window and walking briskly towards Marinette. He was swinging his tail and grinning languidly, advancing upon her ever closer.

"And why would you want to get to know me, kitty?" Marinette said coyly, stepping forward to meet his challenge. "Why would the _bravest_ cat of Paris spend his precious time with only one of his Princesses?"

"I'm interested," Chat said modestly, looking down at Marinette's shorter form. "I'm interested to see what you're really like."

 _What I'm really like?_ Marinette thought with laughter. _Silly cat, you have no idea._

"Then will I be expecting more night time visits, Chat Noir?" she said, looking up at him from under her lashes.

Chat blinked in surprise under his mask. He'd never seen Marinette like this. He paused slightly. This Marinette was very different from the Marinette he knew at school. This Marinette was bold and fearless, teasing and quick, she was almost like…

"We'll see, Princess," he said at last.

At that moment his ring let out a sharp beep and he sighed internally. "Unfortunately, I must go," he said. "But this conversation is most definitely not over."

He grinned one last time and turned to jump out the open window. Marinette rushed to the window, moments after his departure to search for him, but not a single trace of his cat-like visage remained.

A few rooftops over, Chat Noir leapt from a rooftop to a darkened alleyway and released his transformation. Adrien once again, he stepped into the well light street and headed in the direction of his home.

"Well that visit was interesting," he mumbled to himself.

"How was it any sort of interesting?" Plagg said as he flew himself onto Adrien's shoulder. "You hardly know the girl, get into an argument, and there wasn't a piece of cheese in sight!"

Adrien rolled his eyes, "All you think about is cheese, Plagg."

"All you think about is Ladybug," Plagg retorted. "What exactly do you plan to discuss with Marinette? Your non-existent romantic life with the greatest superhero of Paris?"

"No!" Adrien said "I just want to get to know her as Chat Noir. I've never seen her like this outside of school."

"As if that's going to change anything," Plagg muttered distractedly. "I need some cheese when we get home, I'm starving."

While Plagg rambled on about the cheese he wanted to eat, Adrien's mind wandered. Yes, his attempts at romance with Ladybug had been rebuffed multiple times, and yet he still couldn't stop thinking about her. But something about Marinette distracted him from Ladybug's radiance. Her quiet determination and steadfast loyalty was something he witnessed first-hand, and she had not even been wearing a mask!

His thoughts drifted to her pink warm bedroom and Marinette's blushing face when she confronted him. Out of nowhere, his heart began to beat more rapidly. He may not have been making any progress with Ladybug, but his life may have just become very complicated.


	2. The Journey to School

Chapter Two

Marinette almost had to physically drag herself to school. Ladybug she might be, but her luck primarily had to do with her superhero side, not her regular one. Her alarm gone off at a completely inappropriate time: the inappropriate time of four in the morning. She had dressed, found her homework, and was halfway down the stairs to the bakery when she looked outside the window and realized it was still dark. She had not slept since then.

 _And I thought I was doing so well too,_ she groaned internally. Her luck seemed to run out whenever she needed it most. _I wonder if Chat Noir's real identity has good luck in his normal life, s_ he wondered briefly, _It would certainly even out his poor luck on the job._

Thinking of Chat Noir brought back memories from earlier in the night. Marinette frowned. The fact that he knew where she lived and had actively sought her out worried her. She had practically spelled out that she wanted their secret identities and their super life separate. If he continued to visit her, he could find out who she really was. That could ruin everything.

Marinette bit her lip and stared at her feet, taking her on the well-worn path to school. Ladybug might be fierce and brave, but Marinette was not. The fact that Tikki had chosen her for the destiny of Ladybug was nearly humorous. If Chat Noir ever found out her identity, heaven forbid, he would surely abandon her.

Even at the thought of losing him, Marinette's eyes almost began to water. He was the only one who truly understood what it was like to be her. He too had a secret identity, a role to play in regular life, a destiny that he wasn't quite prepared for. Chat Noir was her only friend on the other side.

With him, it was the Miraculous Ladybug and Chat Noir, heroes of Paris. With him it was them against all evil. Without his partnership and trust, Marinette seriously doubted she could do her job. Sure she usually came up with the plan that saved their hides, but twice now he'd saved her from certain peril: Once from Time Breaker's energy stealing and another time from Cupid's poisoned arrows. If he hadn't foolishly sacrificed himself for her, she would most surely be dead.

If he found out about the girl behind the mask, the fearful gentle Marinette, he'd begin to doubt her. He wouldn't trust her to do what's right. He'd lose his love for Ladybug, and doing so, lose what kept them so close.

 _I can't let him figure it out,_ Marinette thought, suddenly steeling herself and standing straighter. She was determined now. The next time Chat Noir invaded her personal life, she'd definitely tell him to butt out.

Adrien tapped his fingers impatiently against his leg. He knew he was running exactly on schedule but somehow his driver's steady speed was not fast enough. He was dying to see Marinette. While he wanted to see her as Chat Noir, he was intrigued enough by their conversation last night to want to talk to her today, as Adrien.

Sure, he had tried before, but all of his advances at conversation or friendship seemed slim once Marinette started stammering. At first, he thought she was afraid of boys. When he'd first gotten out of homeschooling, he had been terrified to talk to any girl, but it soon passed. But if she was bold enough to talk to Chat Noir in the darkness of her room late at night, surely she could handle talking to Adrien in the day at school.

Finally, his limousine pulled up to the curb of the school. He thanked his driver and stepped out of the car into the sunshine. He shielded his eyes from the sudden brightness and scanned the sidewalk for Nino.

Upon spotting him, he rushed over, eager to see his friend. Nino was sitting on the steps to the main door talking to Alya. They were laughing and waving their hands animatedly. A brief pang of longing went through Adrien at the sight. As much as he loved being Chat Noir and fighting evil with Ladybug, he wished sometimes that he was like them, normal with a normal life. The simplicity in it called to him.

"Nino! Alya!" he called waving to them. They called out their greetings and smiled, waving him over.

"Adrien, you won't believe it-", Nino began as Adrien joined them.

"The most incredible thing-", Alya said, overlapping him.

"Let me guess," Adrien said grinning "you saw Ladybug."

Alya beamed "How did you know?" she asked wiggling her eyebrows.

Adrien chuckled, beaming back. It was well known that Alya was Ladybug's biggest fan, followed closely by him, and her ability to find Ladybug was almost uncanny. Really, the amount of times that Alya had run into the illusive Parisian hero seemed astronomical. Her determination to reveal Ladybug and Chat Noir's identities scared Adrien a little when they had come face to face with her as an akuma, but luckily Ladybug had proved that masks are not always easily removed.

Alya's Ladyblog was Adrien's most visited web page. The daily updates and occasional video footage or picture of the two heroes was quite impressive. Adrien monitored it constantly to make sure Alya had not discovered his identity or Ladybug's. It was one thing to have him seek out Ladybug on the sly, but a civilian damasking her seemed more like a threat than anything.

"I saw her swinging from her yo-yo yesterday," Alya said blissfully staring into space. "It was sooo magical, you wouldn't believe it!"

"I really couldn't," Adrien said, laughing internally. Oh, how envious Alya would be if she got to see Ladybug as much as he did.

"I wish you could have got it on video, Alya," Nino said, pouting slightly. "I'd like to see it. Ladybug's incredible!"

"What about Ladybug?"

The three turned at the sudden voice to see Marinette walking up to them. Bright as ever, she strode up to the steps and sat next to Alya.

Her best friend turned and clutched her shoulders tightly. "I saw her!" Alya said. "There I was, walking home from the café, and who should go swinging over my head, none other than Ladybug, herself!" She swept her hand over the horizon dramatically "It was one of the most inspiring sights I've ever seen. Ahh, Ladybug! One day I'll find you!"

Marinette giggled and pulled Alya's hands from her shoulder into her lap. "Alya, you're so lucky to see her so often! I wish I was around whenever she was there."

"On day you will, Marinette," Alya said, holding Marinette's hands in hers, squeezing them in excitement. "I swear it! With my good luck, you're bound too."

"Could you extend that promise to me?" Nino said jokingly. "I may not be Ladybug's biggest fan, but man! She's so cool! I wish I could take a picture with her, it would definitely get me some kind of credit for film school."

"I've seen her," Adrien said suddenly.

At his voice, Marinette turned and blushed ferociously. In her haste to get to Alya, she had overlooked Adrien. Her bad luck seemed to have taken her from simple time confusion to ignoring the most amazing boy in school, and her crush.

"I was driving to the Pantomime show," he continued "and there she was. She saved me from The Mime. It must've been two, three weeks ago? It was really cool."

If it was physically possible, Marinette might've blushed even more. Adrien praising Ladybug was one of the things she really loved about being a hero. Seeing someone she liked talking about her without knowing was almost like a compliment.

The bell rang for class just as Alya laughed. "Really, Adrien, I'd think you'd remember about all the times she saved us here, at school."

"This was different," Adrien said as they all walked into the school. "This time it was just me and Ladybug. I mean, she saved me sure, but looking at her standing there, so brave in the face of danger, it just made me think, you know? She's just fantastic."

Marinette remained silent, but internally she was practically squealing with joy. Adrien Agreste, the most incredible boy in school, thought she, Ladybug, was fantastic. It was almost too much to handle without melting into a puddle.

Alya laughed again. "Well if you love her so much, why don't you marry her?" She turned away from the boys to link arms with Marinette and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "That is, unless you marry him first."

"Alya!" Marinette sputtered, "Don't talk so loud! What if he heard?"

Alya giggled at Marinette's incomprehensible mutterings and, with a small wave to the boys, turned with Marinette to go to her locker. As Alya locked at Adrien, however, her brow furrowed. His face wasn't locked with her eyes long enough to properly assess his features, but she could swear, for the briefest second, that his face flushed a slight pink.


	3. The Challenge

"…and he didn't even know I was gone till he turned around!" Alya said giggling. She was about to continue but quickly stopped when Marinette did not join in her laughter. "Marinette, are you listening to me?"

"Huh?" Marinette said swiveling her head away from the bleachers across the room and to Alya.

Alya's eyes traveled where Marinette's had been and she sighed upon seeing Adrien. He was walking down the bleachers with Nino, headed towards the door. "Girl, if you want to talk to him so badly, why don't you just do it?" she asked.

"Talk?! To him?!" Marinette stammered. "How could I possibly ever talk to him? I can barely string two sentences together when he's within five feet of me."

"Look," Alya said, placing her books in her bag, "What's the worst that could happen?"

"He rejects me and I die in a pit of despair, alone forever."

"Only with that kind of attitude," Alya said. "Why don't you just try taking it slow? Ask him about himself? Like what kind of colors he likes or what sort of movies he watches?"

"But I already know all of those things!" Marinette said throwing her hands in the air hopelessly.

"But he doesn't know you know those things."

"But if he thinks that I know the things he knows, he'll know I'm weird."

"If he knows the things you know about him, he'll know you're thoughtful and you'll know that I'm right, and I'll know that I helped you realize how much I really know."

" _Well_ …wait what?"

Alya laughed, "Oh Marinette, you're so easy to confuse. My point is: talk to him. Clearly, the sitting around and hoping he notices you thing isn't working. Why not try another strategy? My strategy."

"Your strategy," Marinette said, poking her friend's shoulder, "could easily wind me up in a situation where Adrien realizes how hard I'm crushing on him. I don't want to be rejected. It's easier just to hope he notices me rather than risk it all like that."

"If you just sit around, he's never going to notice you," Alya said "And besides, rejection isn't that bad."

"How on earth would you know that, Alya?" Marinette said crossing her arms, "you've never even asked anyone out."

Alya raised her eyebrows shrewdly. "Alright then," she said, cracking her knuckles before extending her hand to Marinette. "If I ask a boy out, will you please put your fear behind you and talk to Adrien?"

Marinette looked down at Alya's outstretched hand warily. Making a wager of any sort with her was always dangerous. She took competition very seriously.

 _How bad could it be?_ Marinette thought to herself. _I'm the hero of Paris. I take down akumas in my free time. If Ladybug can be brave, why not Marinette?_

"Alright," Marinette said, taking Alya's hand and shaking it firmly, "it's a deal."

"Good," Alya said, suddenly standing up.

"Wait, where are you going?" Marinette said in confusion, gathering her things quickly to join her.

"To go ask someone out," Alya said casually. "Honestly, this wager was really the spur I needed to do it."

"What?!" Marinette yelped. "We didn't agree to do it right now!"

"No time like the present," Alya said brightly. "Come on scaredy-cat, I need to find him before break is over." And rushing out of the gym doors, holding Marinette's hand, she headed out to meet her challenge.

"All I'm saying, dude, is that their new sound is way better than their stuff from two years ago," Nino said, plugging his headphones into his MP3.

Adrien nodded, "I agree with you, man. Honestly I wouldn't know half the things I do about music if you didn't tell me. You're like a musical wizard."

Nino grinned, laughing a bit. "Ha! A musical wizard, I like the sound of that! Way better than I liked the sound of being the Bubbler."

"You can say that again."

"Way better than I liked-."

"Nino!"

Both boy's heads turned behind them at the sound of a girl's voice. Alya was running from the gym, dragging Marinette behind her, and waving frantically at them.

"Jeez, I thought I wouldn't catch you before the bell rang," Alya said, reaching them slightly out of breath. "I wanted to ask you something," she said to Nino.

"What's up?"

"There's a new movie coming out about spies in Paris, its playing at the New Globe Theater on Saturday, do you wanna go to it with me?"

"Sure, what time?" Nino said, barely blinking.

"I was thinking around 11:00?" Alya said whipping out her phone to mark the event down. "Is that time any good for you?"

"Sounds perfect," Nino said pulling his phone out to do the same. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Great! See you later boys!" And with that, Alya breezed away as quickly as she had come, still dragging Marinette behind her.

Nino turned back to Adrien, "Anyway, the band really-."

"Wait, wait! Hold on! Did she just ask you out?" Adrien asked, eyebrows raised in surprise.

"I guess," Nino said shrugging. "I mean, I like her. I'd like to go out with her. It kind of made sense in the moment."

"Dude, I can't believe how calmly you just handled that," Adrien said, still shocked at Nino's nonchalance. "I mean, you've never been asked out before, how did you even know what to say?"

"Adrien, you don't have to overthink it," Nino said smirking slightly. "If you like a girl and she asks you out, why not say yes? Anything could happen."

"And that doesn't scare you? The fact that anything could happen?"

Nino smiled at Adrien's obliviousness. "That's the best part, man," he said. "This could go anywhere and become anything. It's exciting. Why wouldn't I want to take that risk?"

Adrien frowned as the bell signaling the end of free period ran. _Why shouldn't I take a risk with Ladybug,_ he thought. _I like her, I should ask her out._ But as he walked down the halls with Nino to his next class, his mind wandered from the girl in the mask and landed on the sweet face of Marinette, sitting a row behind his seat.

 _This could go anywhere and become anything_.

He took his seat, eyes focused forward to the chalkboard. His thoughts were touched by images of two girls with equally wonderful traits and similar features. Marinette was near him, full of life, brightness, and kindness. Ladybug was beside him filled with cleverness, bravery, and unwavering goodness.

 _What am I thinking,_ he pondered as the teacher strode in. _Anything with Ladybug is what I want, right?_ He turned around at the sound of Marinette answering her call for role, and his mind was suddenly clouded with doubt. Anything to happen with Ladybug was logically the answer, but as he stared at Marinette, intently drawing in her notebook, he was not so sure anymore.


	4. The Accidental Bump

"Almost done, Tikki," Marinette said as she opened her locker to remove her books.

"Take your time, Marinette," Tikki said hovering inside the locker. "Nothing's happened all day, and nothing happened last night, maybe nothing will happen this afternoon."

Marinette sighed and thought about the amount of homework she'd been assigned. "I hope you're right," she whispered, grabbing the last of her books. "As much as I want to be Ladybug tonight, I don't know if I have time."

The vague memory of her parents asking her to run the shop after school wafted into her mind and she slapped her hand to her head. "Oh no, time! I have to get home in twenty minutes! My parents will kill me if I don't watch the shop today."

Tikki nodded and quickly soared into Marinette's purse. Marinette slammed her locker and rushed out of the room, holding her phone in one hand and her books in the other. However, because she was using one hand to text her mother to tell her she was on the way home, she did not look before she turned into the hallway and ran straight into someone.

A crashing pair of teens tumbled to the ground, books sprawled openly over the floor, and phones skidding across the tile.

"I'm so sorry!" Marinette said apologetically, rubbing her head to check for bumps. "I wasn't looking where I was going and I-".

"It's fine, totally fine!"

Marinette looked up to face what was, in her mind, the most unlucky circumstance she'd ever encountered. Adrien sat in front of her, gathering his books and looking a bit sheepish.

"If anything it was my fault," he said, picking up his papers "I was really distracted by a text my manager sent me, I should've been looking at the floor and not my screen."

"Me too," Marinette said, surprising herself. "I wasn't paying attention either, s-sorry."

Adrien chuckled, "It looks like we both ran into a bit of bad luck, eh?"

Marinette blushed, "T-that's just what I-I was thinking. Honestly though, I'm so clumsy sometimes it doesn't surprise me when I end up doing things like this. It happens all the time. I really should be more careful. Alya always is telling me to look before I step and...".

Marinette's babbling petered out as she stared above her. Adrien had emerged from the ground and was offering her his hand.

Hesitantly, Marinette reached out her own and grasped his firmly. He lifted her up gently, this time, she did not stumble.

"I...uh..." she mumbled, blushing more at the fact that their hands had not let go of each other. "Thank you."

Adrien smiled, "No problem, Marinette."

As he said her name, her chest felt a pang and her heart began to race. This was the longest she'd ever maintained a conversation with him. And he was holding her hand.

" Hey, I just realized something," he said, separating her hand from his at last (much to her disappointment). "We've been schoolmates all year, and I don't even have your cellphone number."

If Marinette had not been so shocked after he said this, she probably would have fainted. But something inside of her, the same something that had caused Tikki to notice her out of all the candidates in the world, made her open her mouth and respond to him.

"Oh yeah, here, let me right it down".

Adrien might have, in that moment, been more shocked than Marinette. He had not expected this at all. Maybe she isn't as nervous as I thought, he wondered as she wrote the number down on a scrap of paper, maybe we have the chance to be friends when I'm not wearing the mask.

Marinette handed him her number, and quickly picked up her books from the floor. Finally, feeling as if her heart could take it no more, she rushed off past him.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" she said, not looking back, worried that her blush would betray her.

As Adrien watched her walk out the front door, bewildered, he smiled to himself. "It might be sooner than you expect, Princess."

-

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," Marinette said to herself. "I can't believe that just happened."

"Marinette," Tikki said, poking her head out of the purse. "What's going on? You've been saying that for the past ten minutes."

"I talked to him," Marinette said in a daze, "I talked to him normally. I talked to Adrien and I barely even stuttered."

"Wow! Good job!" Tikki said enthusiastically, "You're getting braver. And you wonder why I chose you to be Ladybug."

"I have to tell Alya," Marinette said looking down at the kwami. "She told me to stop being afraid of Adrien and I did. I did it."

Tikki beamed, "You should take your friend's advice more often if it makes you feel this good."

"Tikki, I can't believe it! I just can't"

The kwami laughed, "Well why don't you call Alya? Maybe if you told her you'd believe it more."

Marinette nodded, still distracted, and reached her hand past Tikki to grab her phone. She pulled it out and immediately was confused.

The model of the phone was familiar, the screen however, was not. Upon looking at a picture of Nino and Adrien together, a chilling thought entered Marinette's mind.

"I picked up the wrong phone."

Perfect, she successfully gave her number to Adrien, and now he had no way to contact her because his phone was in her hand and not in his.

Marinette groaned in dismay. "Tikki, honestly, I'm I going to have bad luck for the rest of my life?"


	5. The Mask

Adrien had just reached his home as a phone rang.

His brow furrowed in confusion. The ring was definitely coming from his bag but it was not his ringtone. Pausing for only a second, he reached into the bag and pulled out a phone. He frowned, even more confused.

The phone that was not his was ringing with his own number, lighting up the screen with an unknown caller ID. He hit answer and pulled the phone up to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Oh, Adrien, thank goodness!" Marinette said from the other end. "We picked up the wrong phones when we bumped into each other earlier."

Adrien laughed into the speaker, surely this turn of events was fate; he had planned to call Marinette later that evening. This was practically an invitation to see her! Even better than what he had anticipated.

"Sorry about that," he chuckled. "Is there any time soon I can return it to you?"

"Um, well I have to watch the bakery till six today," Marinette said quickly ."Maybe you could come by around then?"

Adrien smiled, "Sounds great! I'll be there at six then."

"O-okay."

"See you then Marinette."

"B-bye, Adrien," Marinette squeaked and hung up the phone. She set down the phone carefully, and breathed out a sigh of relief. Talking on the phone to Adrien was much easier than in person. At least over the phone she couldn't be distracted by how perfect he was. Alya would be impressed with her.

"Tikki," Marinette groaned, flopping onto her bed dramatically, "How did I get into this mess? The first progress I've made with Adrien and I can't even call Alya!"

The kwami laughed and hovered near Marinette's face. "You'll talk to her soon," she said smiling, "It'll just be a few hours till Adrien brings your phone back."

Marinette blushed and covered her face with her arms, "Hours, Tikki! I can't believe it. He'll be here so soon!"

Adrien took a deep breath and looked up at the sign that read "Bakery". The sun was just beginning to set and the sky was turning dark with twilight imminent. He caught his reflection in the window of the shop and hastily brushed his hair to the side, patting it down to make himself more presentable.

 _Okay, calm down,_ he thought to himself, _you're going to go in there and talk to Marinette. It's not a date, it's not even the first time you're meeting her. You're going to go in there and be friendly._

Adrien swallowed. He didn't know where all of these nerves were coming from. He knew that he wanted to be her friend, but this task seemed to be more demanding for him than it would for anyone else in his class.

Squaring his shoulders, he reached out for the handle and stepped inside. A bell rang cheerfully above him. Immediately, his nose was hit with the intoxicating aroma of fresh bread. His eyes scanned the warmly lit shop, full to the bursting with bright pastries and crispy breads. A few customers loitered on the small tables, chatting quietly amongst themselves. Behind the counter stood a large man in an apron and a small woman stocking new pastries in the display case.

The man and the woman were not smiling necessarily, but the easy flow of their talk and synchronized movements around the baking area made it plain how comfortable they were. As the man pulled a fresh tray of bread out of the oven, the woman ducked his quick turn and spun towards an undecorated cupcake, painting it with icing. As soon as she finished with the first colorful bag, the man was there handing her the next colored bag, not a word spoken between them; only a slight smile of thanks from the woman and a casual wink from the man.

As Adrien watched, half inside the shop, the man caught his eye and gestured him inside.

"Welcome to the Boulangerie Patisserie, young man," he said wiping his hands on his apron and walking to the counter. "What can I do for you this evening?"

"Um, I'm here to see Marinette," Adrien said walking to the counter shyly, eying her father's large size warily.

"Ah! You must be Adrien!" he said smiling, mustache moving upwards. "Marinette said you'd be stopping by. Really, it's quite a pleasure to meet you at last; she goes on about you and your father's fashion shows all the time."

He stuck out his hand, covered in a slight dusting of flour. "Tom Dupain, Marinette's father."

Adrien shook the man's hand, his fingers quickly swallowed by Tom's larger palm. "Adrien Agreste."

Tom nodded and lifted the removable counter top, inviting Adrien out of the shop and into the kitchen. "This is my wife, Sabine," he said gesturing towards the black haired woman Adrien had spotted earlier.

"So nice to meet you, Adrien," she said smiling warmly, walking towards them. "Forgive me for not shaking your hand, but as you can see, it's quite covered in icing."

"It's nice to meet you too, ma'am," Adrien said smiling back at her. Compared to her husband, she was positively miniscule, dwarfed by his large frame. Though they were completely different in appearance, Adrien could see a bit of Marinette in both of them. The color and texture of Mrs. Cheng's hair matched Marinette's almost perfectly, and Marinette's smile was nearly identical to her father's.

It was at times like these that Adrien wondered how much he looked like his parents and whether people gave him respect because of it. Gabriel Agreste was a powerful man; many people expected him to be like him. It was because of this fear that Adrien tried to distinguish himself from his father as much as possible, replacing Gabriel's cold demeanor with kindness, or Gabriel's dismissiveness with encouragement.

"Marinette's upstairs," Sabine continued. "If you go up the stairs, she's in the attic room up the ladder. Sorry we can't show you ourselves, but we're a bit busy down here."

"Thank you, Mrs. Cheng," Adrien said walking towards the door to the house. "I'm sure I'll find it." With a quick wave to her parents he went through the doorway and into the apartment.

The interior of their home was just as warm as the shop, with colorful paints and bright pictures lining the halls. He could tell Marinette had a hand in it too. Spending so much time around designers had given him an eye for recognizing artistic touches in everyday things like upholstery and decorations. Little bits of Marinette lay around the house in the spindly knick-knacks and carefully placed photos of her family.

He looked, with slight amazement, at the flow of the pictures down the hall to the attic ladder. Each picture, taken about a year apart, showed Marinette's growth from a small baby to a round faced child to a young adult. Each picture looked completely natural, her family smiling together happily in a park or on a beach, all three totally content with where they were and who they were with.

A longing went through Adrien, stronger longing than he'd ever felt before. As he gazed at the pictures of Marinette and her family he felt a yearning for something like that; a family who cared for him, loved him, looked after him. He craved a warm home and a mother's touch. It had been so long since his father had smiled or he had seen his mother's face.

With a pain in his chest he cast his eyes to the attic stairs, to Marinette. _I can't see her like this,_ he thought. _One look at me and she'd know how pathetic I am, how upset._

He took another deep breath and set his face to model smile mode. He may not always be Chat Noir, but he was used to wearing a mask long before Plagg claimed him as a Miraculous.

"Marinette?" he called out cheerfully towards the ladder. "I'm here! Your parents let me in."

Above his head he heard the scuffling of feet and seconds later, Marinette appeared at the top of the ladder.

Her face was flushed with surprise and her eyebrows shot so far into her bangs Adrien thought for a moment that they'd disappeared forever. "A-Adrien," she stuttered, "Sorry I thought that someone else…never mind, um, welcome home!"

She almost slapped herself in embarrassment, _Welcome home?_ She thought, blushing even more. _Who even says that?_

"I mean, not welcome to _your_ home, but welcome to my home, and, um, hi?" She swallowed nervously, this was so not going the way she wanted it to. "You can come up the ladder, I have the phone- your phone up here."

Blushing crimson, she turned away from the ladder and headed into her room, quickly doing one last sweep to make sure all the posters of Adrien she had plastered on her walls were stowed away out of sight. Convinced that her insanity was safely hidden, she turned towards her desk to retrieve his phone.

Her hypersensitive ears heard Adrien clambering up the ladder and entering her room, but for the purpose of maintaining her cool, she did not turn around.

"I'm sorry all this happened," she started to babble, still facing away from temptation. "I really need to start watching where I'm going. I mean, when we were in kindergarten they had us watch videos about looking both ways before crossing the street and I think the same should be applied to hallways. If I was looking where I was going this wouldn't have happened at all and you wouldn't have had to come all this way-."

"It wasn't all your fault," Adrien said from behind her.

Marinette jumped slightly, and turned around to face him, phone clutched in her hand. He was closer to her than she had anticipated. Hypersensitive as her ears were being, they hadn't picked up on his cat like footsteps into her room.

"I bumped into you too," Adrien said smiling and putting his hand into his hair abashedly, "If anything I should be apologizing to you. I picked up your phone by accident first."

"You don't need to apologize," Marinette said quickly waving her hands. "I wasn't hurt and now that you're here, we can give each other's phones back. No damage done!"

Adrien chuckled and held out Marinette's phone to her. "It's dinged a few times," he admitted as he placed it in her hand. "Don't worry though, I didn't look at any of the messages."

"Your phone's been pretty buzzy all afternoon," Marinette said as she handed it back to him, "I didn't realize how busy you were. I guess the life of a model is more fast-paced than I expected."

"Oh, it's not that hard," Adrien said, mask still in place. "It's even fun! I get to meet so many people and go interesting places all the time! You should see my father whenever he hears I have a new job, he's really proud of me!"

He looked down at Marinette and felt his happy words catch in his throat. She was staring at him intensely with a confused frown on her face. His heart sped up and his face heated.

"Adrien," she said quietly looking up at him through her eyelashes. "I know that this may sound weird, but I feel like even though you sound happy when you talk about modeling you seem… really upset. Are you okay?"

He sucked in a breath of surprise. Under her scrutiny he felt his mask crumble and fall. For the first time in his life, he was completely vulnerable. He had never shown this face to anyone before, not even Nino. The face of exhaustion, fatigue. He felt tired, inexplicably tired and utterly relieved at the same time.

No one had ever asked him this before. No one had ever noticed under the smile how upset he was. Only Marinette, shy sweet Marinette who he barely knew had seen it and asked. Air caught in his lungs and he felt his smile slide from his face. Marinette's blue eyes, which seemed so strangely familiar, pierced him. He felt the blood drain from his face and tears begin to well in his eyes.

Seeing Adrien, a boy who was so constantly smiling, on the verge of tears caused Marinette to abandon the thing inside of her that made her so fearful of his rejection. Before the thought had even fully formed in her mind, she reached out and pulled him into her arms, hugging him tightly.


	6. The Hug and After

Adrien was shocked, totally and utterly shocked. Here he was, breaking down in front of Marinette, and instead of acting uncomfortable or distant she'd hugged him, actually hugged him. Her head was nestled against his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist. For a fraction of a second he froze, completely unsure of what to do, and then his body acted of its own accord, returning her embrace and resting his forehead on her shoulder, shielding his watery eyes from her view. 

He had been hugged by friends before, and by his mother, before she left, even by Ladybug, but somehow Marinette's hug wrapped him in a warmth he had never felt before. He could feel his body lean into hers, and her arms pulling him in tighter, urging him closer. He felt a sob form inside of his chest, struggling to break free, and tears yearning to flow from his eyes. 

He dug his fingers gingerly into her back, clasping her to him. He worried, distantly, that letting go of her would cause him to break into pieces. That he'd shatter, broken from the weight of all the loneliness he bore. His body trembled, tilting on the edge of a knife, unsure of whether to completely let go or hold himself together for a few moments longer. 

"It's okay," she whispered, rubbing his back lightly. "It's going to be okay." 

At last, he let out a sob, giving into his trembling and felt Marinette stiffen for a moment, before continuing to rub his back. He could tell she was confused, hell, anyone would be in her situation. 

He could feel his worries and anxieties pounding against his skull. His fear over losing his friends to his father and homeschool, his fear of Ladybug leaving him, the way his mother had, his unrelenting terror of the Miraculous he wore vanishing and taking Plagg and his only freedom with it. These larger worries coupled with smaller anxieties like modeling, school, and projects had coiled tightly around his heart and mind. It was a wonder he hadn't broken down before now. 

"I'm sorry," he muttered into her shoulder. "I didn't mean to come here and be like this. I'm really sorry you have to see this. I'm sorry I-." 

"Adrien," she interrupted soothingly, "It's okay." 

He nodded into her shirt and began to regulate his breathing. For a few moments, everything was silent and still except for the sound of their breathing. It was just Adrien and Marinette, simple as could be. 

Slowly, with great regret, he pulled away and stepped out of her hug. The moment they broke contact, he could feel coldness penetrate him again. Her face seemed to hold the same amount of sadness he felt, her eyes slightly watery and her cheeks flushed. 

"I'm such a mess right now," he said lowly, providing her with the simplest answer possible. "I've been having a lot of doubts with my modeling, and honestly I haven't enjoyed it in a long time. Sometimes, I feel like the only reason I've stuck with it for so long is to make my dad happy." He looked down at her sad and compassionate expression before shaking his head slightly. "Sorry," he continued slightly embarrassed, "I don't know why I'm telling you this." 

Marinette slowly raised her hand up and pressed it against his damp cheek. "You can tell me whatever you want," she said quietly. "I'd be honored to listen. And I promise that if you ever want to talk, I'm here, ready." 

She moved her hand from his face and stretched it out to him. "Friends?" she asked. 

Finally, Adrien truly smiled for the first time that day. It was only the slightest turn at the corners of his mouth, but his eyes began to clear and he grasped her hand firmly in his. 

"Friends."

-

After Adrien left, Marinette lay on her bed, ignoring the gathering darkness and clutched her phone. Her urge to call Alya was slowly subsiding. As much as she wanted to talk to her about Adrien, their meeting was intense and personal in a way that you couldn't share with anyone, not even your best friend. He had seemed so vulnerable, so lost, she couldn't stop herself, she had to help him. 

She turned to her side and faced the window, curling up into a ball. She'd never seen him that way, she doubted if anyone had, and he trusted her, practically an acquaintance, enough to let her in. He'd opened himself up to her, showed her exactly who he was with no expectations. It was honestly the most intimate she'd ever felt with someone outside of Alya and Chat Noir. 

At the thought of Chat Noir, she frowned. Her kitty visitor was still a problem, and after his intrusion the previous night, she wondered exactly how far he'd go to see her, or if it was simply a passing fancy. 

Surely if he wanted to see me again he would have by now, she wondered, glancing at the clock. It was well past nine and the streets of Paris were under his patrol tonight. If he was going to visit her, now would be the time.

She sighed and stared intently out the window at the stars. It wasn't that she _wanted_ to see him, it was just that after Adrien's surprising break from character she could use the consistency of Chat's humor. She hadn't seen him as Ladybug since two days before and, quite honestly, she was missing her friend.

Even as she thought this she mentally smacked herself. Wasn't she just telling herself this morning that he needed to butt out? She couldn't have her personal life and super life converge, ever. Surprisingly though, the thought of telling him to leave now saddened her. Chat was not trying to ruin or life or figure out who Ladybug was. He didn't really know who she was, and it couldn't do any harm to see him once or twice more as Marinette, would it?

Outside Marinette's window, Chat was facing a slight dilemma. Marinette was clearly inside but her room was dark, indicating disinterest in doing or seeing anyone. Not to mention, he was unsure whether or not spending so much time with her as Adrien today would move her closer to discovering his identity.

He missed her, even the two hours they'd been apart seemed like an eternity to him. As Adrien, he was embarrassed and worried about seeing her again, but as Chat he had the confidence to see her without seeming too clingy or stalkerish. He wanted to see her so badly, to talk to her, to hug her again. It was almost like an uncontrollable craving, struggling to break free of him and fly to Marinette where all could be satisfied.

He knew he wanted to be her friend, but he never knew how much he needed to. Her light, her kindness was the best thing he had stumbled on since he met Nino. And God willing, he wasn't ready to let her go any time soon as Adrien or Chat.

God willing, he would never get any peace to sort out his thoughts either.

At that very moment, a large crash resounded through the city. Chat turned his head from the window to watch a bright plume of flame and smoke take the place of the once calm skyline.

Without thinking, he raced towards it, abandoning his post to race across rooftops in an attempt to help. As he leapt, he pulled out his staff and clicked it into communication mode.

Approximately 200 feet away, Marinette was abruptly roused by Tikki.

"Marinette!" the tiny kwami squealed, "Chat's trying to contact you, I think something's happening."

Marinette nodded and stood up, facing the window. For tonight, her personal problems would have to wait. She was needed as Ladybug, a whether or not she was prepared, she had to answer her call. So, gathering herself, she embraced the transformation and hurtled, swinging into the night sky.


End file.
